Shloka 89
Adhyaya 14 — The Messenger of Yama Explains Karmic Retribution and the Causes of Naraka Torments
कालसूत्रे तथा छेदमनेकाश्चैव यातनाः ।
प्राप्य निष्कृतिमेतस्मान्न वेद्मि कथमेष्यति ॥
kālasūtre tathā chedam anekāś caiva yātanāḥ /
prāpya niṣkṛtim etasmān na vedmi katham eṣyati
カーラスートラ（Kālasūtra）と、切断（毀損）およびその他多くの責苦を受けたのち、そこから贖罪（niṣkṛti）を得たとしても、彼がいかなる仕方でさらに進むのか、わたしには分からない。
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FAQs
The verse stresses that suffering and even expiation do not automatically guarantee a clear, immediate return to well-being; karmic residues may still shape the next transition. Ethical conduct is presented as safer than relying on post-facto remedies.
Primarily Dharma/karma instruction rather than the five classical purāṇic topics; it aligns most closely with ancillary purāṇic teaching on conduct and consequences (not Sarga/Pratisarga/Manvantara/Vaṃśa/Vaṃśānucarita).
Kālasūtra (“thread/line of Time”) can be read symbolically as bondage to time-conditioned causality; ‘cutting’ evokes the painful severing caused by one’s own actions. The uncertainty of ‘how he proceeds’ highlights the opacity of karmic unfolding.